Archive for the ‘Financial practices’ Category

Some people have asked about the May 21 email from the SPJ board of directors (see below) about the possible misuse of money in a regional fund in Region 10.

The investigation is still underway, but these are some basic details:

• The board and SPJ HQ have been working with chapters in Region 10 (which covers Washington state, Oregon, Montana, Idaho and Alaska) to figure out what happened.

• A member of the Western Washington SPJ chapter filed a report with the Seattle Police Department on May 10.

• The police report (a public record) says that while Ethan Chung was Region 10 director, thousands of dollars of SPJ money was taken out of the bank during a two-year period for use that was unauthorized.

• Chung was Region 10 director from about October 2015 to January 2018, when he resigned.

• In February, the board appointed Donald W. Meyers as Region 10 director to replace Chung.

• The local chapters and SPJ HQ have gotten access to the bank records and are reviewing them.

We will share more information about the case as it develops.

***

As the May 21 email notes, SPJ has strengthened its oversight on how money in regional funds is kept and monitored. I was part of a task force (along with at-large national board member Lauren Bartlett and regional directors Michael Koretzky, Kelly Kissel and Ed Otte) that came up with the new measures. We presented them to the full board, which approved them in April.

The task force is working on additional measures to strengthen financial practices for pro and campus chapters.

At the chapter level, SPJ has had a few cases of money being taken from bank accounts without authorization.

The Oklahoma Pro chapter learned in 2012 that money was missing. Scott Cooper, who was the chapter’s secretary-treasurer and Region 8 director, later admitted to embezzling more than $43,000 from the chapter. He was ordered to serve four weekends in jail and repay the money.

***

This was the May 21 email on the current Region 10 investigation:

In the interest of transparency, we are writing to alert you that we have filed a police report with the Seattle Police Department over alleged misappropriation of funds from Region 10 bank accounts.

An internal investigation is ongoing. Based upon information to date, it is our understanding that the alleged misappropriation is isolated to one individual.

The national board, headquarters staff and local chapter leaders are cooperating with authorities to get as clear and complete a picture as possible of the extent of the unauthorized activity. Donald W. Meyers, the new Region 10 director, is helping to lead our efforts. We will update you as we get additional information.

To help avoid a similar situation in the future, the national board adopted new rules for regional accounts at its April 14 board meeting. The new rules further enhance the organization’s accountability measures.

If you have any questions, please contact Alison Bethel McKenzie, SPJ executive director, at abmckenzie@spj.org.